And ten



E. J. KEITH.

METHOD OF PROTECTING BEARlNG SURFACES.

APPUCATION FILED JUNE 3,1918.

Patented Oct. 14, 1919.

WITWJJSS. J'JWIJJVTOR.

. E J K 61779,

\ UN T D T TE I T .EEPHBAIM; J.,.Kn1TH,'or sI KEsTon, missounnassrenon orIroaTY rIvE, manna; DRED'II-IS To MATTHEW. s. M RRAY,. or. sIKns on, m ssounr AND TEN onEj---,

H NDREDTH-s To JAMES A.IEI1\TC.H, or NEWJVLADRID, MISSOURI.

METHOD-J or PROTECTING BEARIne-sUnraons.

T0 all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, EPHRAIM J. KEITH, a

citizen ofthe United States-of America, a resident of Sikeston, in the county ofiSCot-t, State of Missouri, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Methods of Protecting Bearing-Surfaces, of which the following is a full, clear, and exact description, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, forming a part of this speci fication.

My invention relates to a means for pro- The accompanying drawing is a section' through a fragment of a sheave and a section of wire rope, with my protecting means applied to both elements as an example of the utility of my invention.

In the drawing A designates a Wire rope and B designates a sheave serving as a support and guide for the wire rope, said sheave having the usual peripheral groove.

It is a matter of general knowledge among users of wire rope that the strands of such a rope create great wear upon the sheaves they operate upon, in time creating grooves in the peripheries of the sheaves with ridges between them, which result in rapid wear of the ropes and the sheaves. This is true, notwithstanding the application of the lubricants to the ropes and sheaves whichform only a thin film of friction reducing medium and do not in any very material measure lessen the wear and destruction of the contacting parts. By my improvement I so coat the contact surfaces of the ropes and sheaves as to separate them from each other and avoid the wear of one metal part against the other, and as a consequence elimimate the possibility of the wire rope cutting into the sheave and the resultant in- Specification of Letters Patent. i

jury to the .wire rope,d-ue to such cutting in.

operation. v

mediunr I-' use to coat the contact:- surfaces of the wire rope and sheave is a selfsolidifying substance, preferably asphalt, which may be used either alone or impregnated with a suitable binder of fibrous material, for example, asbestos or mineral wool.

In preparing asphalt for use as a protective coating for cooperating mechanical elements I take asphalt which has been freed of volatile oils and heat it to a suflicient degree of temperature to renderit fluid or semi-fluid, and while the asphalt is in such condition apply it to the elements it is to protect. The asphalt adheres to such elements and, upon cooling, becomes solidified so that it remains firmly attached thereto, forming mats thereon or therearound. In practical use I have found that the most advantageous way of applying the coating to a wire rope and a sheave on which it operates is by pouring the asphalt while in a fluid or semi-fluid condition onto the rope and sheave while they are in motion, the asphalt congealing when it touches the elevments it is to protectand then becoming built up thereon to form solid coverings, which serve to maintain the elements out of contact with each other.

In the example illustrated 1 designates the covering applied to the wire rope and 2 the covering applied to the sheave. In following the procedure I have described, the asphalt during congealment is built up into a substantially uniform mat at the periphery of the sheave, between it and the wire rope, and a substantially uniform mat of the asphalt is also formed on "the wire rope, any excess of asphalt employed for the coatings being expressed outwardly onto the edges of the flanges of the sheave, as shown.

would be subjected to severe pressure and strain.

I claim 1. The method of applying protective coatings to the bearing surfaces of two co Patented Oct. 14, 191 9. Application filed June 3,1918. serial-K013239055 operating mechanical elements, which consists in placing a heated self-solidifying substance in contact with said elements while they are in motion, causing said substance to be introduced between said elements while congealing thereon.

2. The method of applying protective coatings to the bearing surfaces of wire ropes and sheaves, which consists in placing a heated congealable substance in contact with one of said elements, and moving said elements during congelation of said substance to cause the substance to be introduced between the elements while congealing thereon.

S. The method of applying protective coatings to wire ropes and sheaves, which consists in pouring a fluid or semifiuid congealable substance onto a wire rope and sheave while the wire rope is moving on the sheave, and permitting said substance to congeal on said members.

In testimony that I claim the foregoing I hereunto afiix my signature.

EPHRAIM J. KEITH.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents, Washington, D. 0. 

